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Regatta
Puppyfeet Wiki - Home Regatta - How we help each other succeed (guidelines to team-work) Puppy Feet History - Our "roots" Regatta - Basics The "Regatta" is a week-long race (6 days, really) that allows different Co-Ops to compete against each other by completing "tasks". Regatta Tasks are generally, the same everyday game-tasks that one might do in a typical gaming session anyway, and the Regatta is a way to wrap an extra incentive around being active, and encouraging activity with your team. Each team is "bracketed" with a 14 competing teams (so a total of 15 teams in each race), with (approximately) the same number of "racing" members at the start of the race. Each member is encouraged to participate by performing a minimum of 7 tasks, and if they are unable to race in a particular session, they should set their status to "not racing". One game mechanic is to Regatta - Seasons Seasons Info coming Soon Regatta - Dumping and Reserving Tasks These are meant to be guidelines and we should try to work with each other to find something that works best for our team. Initially these are just my thoughts (Crappy Day) and we can expand these as we communicate with each other what works and what doesn't. There probably isn't going to be a 100% happy ground, but we can try to work towards something that we can at least be happy enough with. My big beef right now is that there aren't enough "slots" for a 30 member team to be happy with. We only have 12 task slots, and with 30 members that means that if all 12 are reserved (hypothetically), it is then impossible for 18 team-mates to do something. I consider this to be a HUGE flaw in the game design and actively prevents this feature from being used appropriately. I would like to see maybe 21 or 24 task slots... but, I have no control over that. All we can do is try to wrap some sanity around it. When reserving a task, always tell the group chat when you reserve it, and about how long you plan until you can get to it. This way, we have a "timestamp" on the request. If you need a bit more time, please communicate that as well. No Task should be held longer than it makes sense! - Please '''try to follow the time guidelines based on the task categories below. Also keep in mind that these are just "guidelines" and we should always strive to help each other out and the team :) There's no way we can have fun in a game if we wrap silly rules around every detail. '''RESERVING TASKS - Click the 'yellow' button in the task screen, and''' let the team know what task you reserved in the group chat''' at the time you reserved it, and about how long until you get to it. This puts a "timestamp" on the request. Reserving is only done through that little button. Team chat does not actually "hold" the reserved item, but team chat DOES let us know WHEN you held it. Task Classification: Unholdable, Undumpable: House of Luck - We've agreed as a team that House of Luck are first come, first serve and mostly shouldn't be dumped. BUT, if you have a SUPER excess of clovers just communicate in team chat and we'll try to not take them. NEVER take a House of Luck task if you do NOT have the clovers to finish it. These should be quick, easy, done and done. Never dump a HoL task because they are super quick and easy points. I don't recall the lowest value for a HoL task but I think generally they are mostly 100+ points. Quick Tasks (Hold Duration ~2 hours): Can typically be completed in < 30 minutes assuming the task taker is prepared. These include Mining, Helicopter and potentially others (like the special "racing task" for the Snow Season). I propose that "Quick Tasks" have a 2 hour limit on their hold. The taker should not hold these while they're waiting on the next 3 airplanes to cycle out, for example. A 2 hour hold is reasonable. A 6 hour hold is not. A 24 hour hold is rediculous. Mid-Range Tasks (Hold Duration: Varies, see example): Slightly longer, such as harvest tasks which might take 2 growing-cycles to complete. Or Maybe "Feed" tasks that only take 1-2 hours if you're paying attention to your cows and chickens. "White Feather" tasks (if you have enough Banana Bread). The first cycle might be able to be prepared in advance, and the taker only has to wait for 1 cycle. Other tasks might include boat tasks that only require 2 or 3 launch cycles, for example. Generally speaking, the "hold" time should be no more than what it would take for a single cycle of that item to be produced. Cacoa, for example, takes 8 hours to grow. If I wish to grow cacoa then holding it for 8 hours is reasonable. Or even 15 hours for silk. 24 hour hold is not reasonable. Long-Range Tasks (Hold Duration: Based on current task grouping): "Launch 4 planes", "Fill nn crates", "Send 13 trains", "Blue Feathers". THESE can take a long time, but they are nice for people to chug through when working throughout the day; you only have to check plane every 4 hours or so and launch the next one. But Still, 4 Plane Launches can take like 16+ hours. Also, most of the time, there is 1 of these free anyway, but if you REALLY want to hold one, then the hold duration should be according to the task you are CURRENTLY working on. So, if I am working on a "Quick" task, the hold on the plane would be 2 hours. If I am working on Cacoa and I REALLY wanted to hold that 4-plane task, then 8 hours is reasonable. BUT, use your best judgement here because MOST of the time there are ABUNDANT Plane and Train tasks. In any case, it probably wouldn't make sense to hold a Train task for 18 hours while you're working on a 4-plane task :P Production-Oriented Tasks (Hold Duration: 1/2 of time to make full requirement): (Make 12 popcycles, Make 11 donuts, Make ## of XYZ) Hold for enough time to produce roughly 1/2 of the requirement seems reasonable. PLEASE communicate with group if you need longer. The LONGEST any person should hold a task should be the SHORTER of the duration for either their CURRENT task category, or the one they intend to hold. So, if I am working on a mining task, and we agree that 2 hours is reasonable duration, and I would LIKE to hold cacoa, then a 2 hour maximum hold for the cacoa is reasonable in this case (instead of 8!). If I am currently working on a 4-plane task though, and I want to hold cacoa then it should be 8 hours (otherwise, let someone else have it). If I cannot get to it in 8 hours, then I need to wait because my planes will take longer. Dumping Tasks '''- Generally, dump tasks that are less than 100 points is always okay, but maybe consider keeping QUICK tasks (eg, Mining, House of Luck). Always dump duplicate Plane and/or Train tasks and consider the "Fill nn crates" to be a duplicate as well (Treat the "fill NN crates" task the same as you would Plane/Train; give preference to the Fill Crates task, because filling OTHER people's crates does give you credit for those). Otherwise, these take forever and just end up clogging up the board b/c nobody wants them :P I'm okay with dumping them, regardless. Feathers? I think we all hate feathers, mostly. White feathers seem okay though, but use Banana Bread. Blue feathers I'm almost always ok to dump them (I hate blue feathers). Probably don't dump "Quick Tasks" like helicopters, mining, etc. unless they are just really low-value. We'd like to target 120 points but anything under 100 can probably go. Please don't dump reserved tasks. "Stealing" tasks (hold expiration) 'So it comes to this? - Keep in mind: We are a TEAM: ' we generally want to do the best we can AS A TEAM! '''Our competition is against the OTHER TEAMS and not '''against each other :) You dig? So, we should do the best we can (in spirit!) to cooperate with each other and nail those ''OTHER ''suckers to the wall! So in a sense, '''we HAVE to be ok with occasionally yielding our tasks to other team-mates, in the spirit of cooperation. This means that as individuals ON the team, we have to each hold ourselves accountable to some reasonable limit on how long it is appropriate to hold a task for. It is not helping the TEAM if I am holding a Mining task for 24 hours; it is actually irresponsible of me to do so (both as a leader, and a team-member). So, even if I DID put a mining task on reserve, that reserve should ONLY be valid for 2 hours, and I should let the team know at the time that I hold it. That way, there is a time-stamp on the hold. And if I expect the hold to be longer than what is reasonable, I should let the team know in advance; in any case, it is then treated as "open" after the 2 hour mark, but ONLY if someone can start it immediately (in other words, respect the reserve unless you can actively start it at that very moment after the reasonable time period has elapsed). This isn't really 'stealing' in my mind. It is still helping the team but still, try to be reasonable. It might not be cool to take something "right at the 2 hour mark" but it's not cool for me to hold a super-quick and easy task for 16 hours, either. There HAS to be a balance. This means that each of us has to be okay with occasionally losing out on tasks that they reserved. I think this is realistic, and a fair way to handle things. Be realistic and fair and understanding :) 'Examples:' (I'm working on a Plane Task, want to hold a mining task) - Max time should be 2 hours hold Me: "Hey Team; I'm finishing up my last plane but it won't land for about 3 hours. I'd REALLY like the mining task and have held it" '' ''- Here, I would really have to just be okay with it, if someone took it but only after the 2 hour mark... I might not like it. But it happens. It wouldn't be fair though, for someone to "reserve" it after the 2 hours because really the net result is the same (the task being held longer than it should). In my mind also, 3 hours is reasonable request, but 6 or 8 wouldn't be. Right: "Hey Team; I took Crappy Day's mining task because it looks like it's been held for 5 hours while he's been working on the Airplane task" Wrong: "Hey Team; I reserved CD's mining task but won't be able to get to it for 3 hours while I wait for my chili to finish growing" Wrong: "Hey Team; I dumped that mining task CD reserved, it's been 2 hours and 3 minutes" -- (Really? Don't dump it! LoL) Questionable but probably ok: "Hey Team, I took CD's mining task although it's only been 2 hours and 3 minutes I can finish it now." -- (Ughh! But ok! I want US to succeed!) (I'm working on Cacoa (8 hours each grow-cycle) and want to hold a Silk task (15 hours each grow-cycle)) - Max time 'should be 8 hours ''Me: "Hey Team; I'm almost done with cacoa, I'll start silk in about 6 hours" ''- Reasonable I think'' Right: "Crappy dead or something, hasn't been on in 10 hours and I can start silk" -- (ok, cool) Wrong: "I was working on silk but didn't reserve it so I took it after 2 hours" -- (little unfair; I wouldn't really mind but someone else might; you have to reserve it, to be reserved) Wrong: "It's been like 5 hours and silk sucks. I'm gonna dump it" -- (bleh...) '''At some point, we have to be OK with letting someone else take a task, as long as they can start it right away and there's been a reasonable duration from when we started our reserve. The long and short of it We are trying to help each other succeed, because that is where the Regatta reward comes from, ultimately. We should try to follow the "spirit" of my intention with what I am saying above. It is not an exact science because I do not believe in wrapping "rules" around a game where team-work is more important than "me-work". The spirit of cooperation is more important in helping the team reach our collective goal :) Please let me know in game if you have any questions. There is also a communications page in this wiki and I think if I were smarter I could figure it out :P But I'll get there eventually. Ya'll are awesome! -CD